For Kicks

By Zach Gamble

On this quiet, cloudy, day, the forest is swaying gently in the breeze. A small doe nurses her newly born fawn. The fawn is small, yet beautiful, a true testament to life and nature. The fawn nestles down to sleep. This peaceful image is shattered by a loud BANG! The fawn wakes frantically and looks to its mother, but the doe is unresponsive, as blood gushes from a small hole on its head. The fawn has no idea what to do, or why its mother is not getting up. Suddenly, howls sound in the distance, and the fawn freezes as a sight of tearing, hungry hounds bound down upon him. We look to the viscous, uneducated cavemen that hold guns in their arms, one still smoking. They eye the kill eagerly, though most of it will be wasted, as they will leave the kill for scavengers, to rot in the forest. The craze eyed man looks to his partner and says non chalantly “That was fun”. What is hunting? Some view it as a “recreational activity” or some view it as “bonding”, but in actuality it is killing. There is nothing relaxing about slaughtering innocents with firearms. Those that have no compassion view it as a “sport” but there is nothing sporting about it. The animals cannot fight back, when faced against instant killing machines. Many of the rural ignorantsignorants talk as to how it is a “father- son bonding” event. Yet statistics show that nearly 95% of kids who commit school shootings such as Columbine or those who take their frustrations out on the public by use of guns had immediate access to hunting firearms, or grew up encouraged to show no mercy when on the hunt by their own deranged fathers. I know several teens who hunt, and what they are like in everyday situations. They can be described as violent, less than genius, and somewhat cruel to pets. I respect the opinion that many hunt for sustinencesustenance, such as the Native Americans. But in this day and age that is definitely not the case. 75% hunt only for trophies, leaving their “sustinencesustenance” to rot. By using modern technology, such as thermal vision and firearms, it cannot be described any other way than as cheating, as the Nnative Americans used bows or less violent weapons to hunt for food. But using guns to “blow away Bambi” is an unethical method to an ancient necessity. Many bring up the point of invasive species, or that of harmful pests. I can relate, as Frederick Ccounty has very recently become a “coyote county” as stated on CNN only 2 days ago. However, humane methods can be used to eliminate a real threat to children and pets. That situation is very different from the one hunters are used to today, which is not the hunt of vermin, but of larger creatures, to which they have done the hunters no wrong. I understand that hunting is